Austin FC’s four-game winning streak evaporated into the sweltering Texas air Sunday night at Q2 Stadium as the Verde and Black fell, 1-0, to the LA Galaxy.
They did so in sloppy, disjointed fashion made only more frustrating by the fact that the Galaxy were nearly as bad. But a spectacular shot from distance by LA’s Mark Delgado in the sixth minute made the difference.
Delgado intercepted an Ethan Finlay pass 30 yards in front of goal and immediately ripped a low driven shot that deflected off the goalpost and in, beating ATX goalkeeper Andrew Tarbell, who played in place of injured starter Brad Stuver. The shot was one of just five on target combined between the teams, who also combined for 25 fouls and six yellow cards.
“We started poorly. We lacked energy, intensity, just the technical quality was really off,” Austin FC coach Josh Wolff said. “It was probably one of our poorest performances… that I can recall in some time.”
It had been nearly six months since the club suffered defeat at Q2 Stadium, dating back to the closing weeks of the 2021 season. While Sunday’s loss did not drop El Tree out of the No. 2 spot in the Western Conference, the club did squander a chance to ascend to the top spot, not only in the West, but in MLS overall.
“This was not good enough,” center back Ruben Gabrielsen said afterward. “We can’t lose at home. We are a better team [than that] and we have high expectations for ourselves.”
The schedule only gets more challenging for Austin FC throughout the month of May, with four consecutive matches against teams in playoff positions. It begins Saturday with a trip to Utah to take on Real Salt Lake, followed four days later with a huge midweek test at top-seeded LAFC. Four days after that, Austin FC returns home to host Orlando City SC, followed by another crack at the Galaxy, this time at Dignity Health Sports Park.
This article appears in Abortion Rights.
